Lola

Photo Courtesy of my main man

Lola after her epic battle with the water hose.

I’m not sure who won.

She certainly earns her title of Miss Supreme Ding-a-ling.

Love that nutter of a pup.

XO,

Leah

 

 

Waiting

Our bags our packed.

My belly is large.

Sleep is not so sound.

Our hearts are anxious.

We are ready to meet our baby.

So, I figured now was as good of a time as any to give you a little tour of the nursery. It is almost done. We are waiting on two final pieces of artwork.

First, let’s take a look back, shall we?

Remember a million years ago when I showed you pictures of what was our office? It had a whole wall of closets and weird white wall covering.

I hated the wall o’ closets, and before I ever knew we were expecting I decided that 2 of 3 closets must go.

This picture makes the closets look even worse than they really were… but I like the effect.

Maybe you will believe me even more when I say that they were truly awful.

Here is a pic of the desk area with the only bold colored walls in our house.

You know what I realized? I’m not really a bold-colored-walls-kinda-gal.

I rather enjoy neutral. Soft, soothing, delightful neutral.

Call me boring.

I don’t care!

This is Lola looking pretty concerned with this whole closet removal process. What did we get ourselves into?

Shortly after this closet came out, we found out that we would be needing a nursery more than an office.

So, my sweet and generous parents offered to come and prime and paint.

And paint they did.

I have long had a vision of a striped wall.

I needed to have it in my house.

And I knew this small room would be the perfect candidate.

So, I started taping.

And taping.

And taping.

And taping.

You get the idea.

Want to know something weird about me?

This kind of precise boring work is very soothing to me. It quiets my mind.

Someone please analyze what this means.

Then, I painted every other stripe the most soothing neutrals I could find.

Calm, serene, almost beachy feeling to me.

Hopefully, this calm environment fosters lots of sleep.

Wishful thinking?

Perhaps.

My manly man of a husband hung the chandelier.

And then I got to work on the contents of the room.

Remember this guy?

I found this amazingly outrageous dining room credenza at a yard sale last summer.

And I loved it at first sight.

So, I sanded it down.

And gave it several coats of black paint.

I found a lovely neutral fabric to replace the strange Asian plastic theme behind the grid.

And we added some handles to the doors.

And voila!

The credenza magically became a storage space and a changing table.

Magic, I tell ya.

Then, I decided I wanted a side table for the rocking chair.

And like everything in the baby furniture business, I didn’t find anything in the normal stores that perfectly suited my fancy.

So, I went to one of my favorite places ever.

The unfinished wood furniture store. I don’t even know the proper name of the store.

The store is awesome. It is a huge collection of furniture all handcrafted from real wood. You can pick out your raw wood furniture and have them finish it, or you can bring it home and finish it yourself.

I rather enjoy (ok, I absolutely LOVE) painting furniture so I always bring mine home.

The furniture is so well made, and it is a fraction of the cost of other stores.

You should see if there is one in your area.

You will be obsessed.

Like me.

So, this guy got a couple of coats of black paint too.

And then I finished him off with some knobs with the same worn silver finish as the chandelier. These are from Anthropologie (talk about another obsession).

We splurged a bit on the super soft throw rug for the room.

But it is worth it.

It makes me want to sleep whenever I stand, sit, lay on it.

Hmmm… someone analyze what that means too please.

Oh, one other thing.

We ended up taking your advice and splurging on the rocker we wanted.

I’m obsessed with it.

So is Brad.

It is exactly what we wanted- comfortable, modern, simple.

The crib fits perfectly in the nook where the old janky closets used to be.

And all that the changing table needs now is the artwork above it and a tiny bottom on it needing a change.

Thanks for letting me share.

As you can imagine, we are just over-the-moon excited.

Have a great Thursday, my friends.

XO,

Leah

You are Going to Love me Forever

Hoo boy.

Every now and then something comes into my life, and I know there is no turning back.

There is no way to go back to the way things were.

Such is the case this evening.

After the Grilled Cheese Burger has entered my life.

I don’t even know if I have anything clever to write about this. My mind is still reeling from the delectable delight of deliciousness.

I mean, you have no idea.

Let’s get right to it.

Mix up some burgers.

For mine, I used a pound of ground beef, one egg, one very large shallot (all chopped up), some salt and pepper, and a little bit of red pepper flake.

And I formed that mixed up meat into six thin burgers.

Get out a large non stick skillet and heat a little extra virgin olive oil over medium-high heat.

Cook the burgers.

Because they are thin, it only takes a couple of minutes on each side to cook these guys.

After about 2-3 minutes, give them a flip.

While the burgers cook, get the rest of your sandwich ready.

I used salted rye bread with sliced Velveeta (I know, I know- it isn’t real cheese, but it is necessary) on one side, and sliced aged cheddar on the other. I also had a little dijon mustard on the bread.

Pull your burgers out of the skillet, and place them on your cheese.

Put the lid on your sandwich.

Wipe your skillet out, and turn your heat down to medium or medium-low. The goal is to melt the cheese while encouraging the bread to get browned up.

You can coax the melting along by covering the pan loosely with foil.

Give those sandwiches a flip.

Oh dear, I’m literally starting to feel drooly.

Pile your sandwich on a plate with some tater tots.

What?

I never said this was a healthy dinner.

I did try to compensate with a little sauteed zucchini and a fresh fruit salad.

I am telling you.

This is pretty much perfection.

It is buttery and cheesy and savory and so dang delicious.

I would make this for company.

You have to make it immediately.

I think it would be extra delicious if the burgers were done on the grill, but the rain prevented it for us.

So, there you have it.

Here are a few keys to success.

Use good bread. As I mentioned, I used a salted rye. If you live in Cincinnati, stop by the Hyde Park Farmers Market on Sundays for Blue Oven Bakery Bread. It will make your life. If you don’t live in Cincinnati, please take the time to invest in a perfect moist and delicious loaf of bread for these sandwiches.

As much as it pains me to say it, I think you must use Velveeta. I can count on one hand the number of times in my life that I have purchases Velveeta. I actually had some in my fridge (you know, it will last there for decades I think) from a mac n’ cheese recipe I made. The Velveeta melts perfectly and some of it is almost absorbed by the burger.

Finally, get a high quality cheese for the second cheese option. I like a sharp white cheddar that is salty. But have fun with it. I’m guessing that a goat cheese or gruyere would be delicious too.

That’s all for tonight.

Please promise me you’ll make a Grilled Cheese Burger. I’m breaking up with you if you don’t.

The end.

Leah

I Heart Malcolm

Malcolm Gladwell makes me happy.

His books are fascinating.

And I love listening to him speak.

You should listen to him too.

And then you should grab any of this books:

Outliers

Blink

What the Dog Saw (loved this one- great little compilation of New Yorker articles)

The Tipping Point

He’ll make ya smarter.

If you have more time to immerse yourself in his fun and fascinating research, here is a longer video.

Leah

 

My Daddy-O

Happy Fathers Day to my Daddy-O!

Thank you for loving my momma. Watching the two of you interact, support each other, love each other, and challenge each other showed me what I deserved and wanted in a man of my own.

Thank you for keeping the most precious hand written account of our childhood. You know that it is one of the material possessions that we kids value the most. The way you captured the hilarity of us growing up and your view of us as your children is priceless.

Thank you for valuing education… for making it a priority for all of us. You wanted and expected the best from us, and you knew we were capable of achieving it.

Thank you for carving out one-on-one time for me. Some of my fondest childhood memories involve our early morning breakfast dates or trips to the horse barn. As one of five kids, those daddy-daughter hours together were perfection.

Thank you for being a man of character. I feel privileged to know some of the ways that you have helped people- always quietly, humbly, and without any fanfare. You care for others because you know it is the right thing to do. Your giving nature has touched many lives including my own.

Thank you for teaching me the value of a buck. Thanks for making us work to get the things we wanted, and thanks for instilling the importance of 1. only buying what we can afford and 2. saving like crazy.

Mostly, thanks for being you. Thanks for listening, for cheering me on, for encouraging me, for praying for me, for hoping with me, and for loving me.

You done good.

With lots of love,

Leah

Pin Pin Pinterest

pinterest.com= my new favorite obsession

Are you familiar?

I had never even heard of the site until a few friends told me that I HAD TO check it out. Seeing that these friends are usually fairly trustworthy, I took their word for it.

And boy, were they right.

Pinterest is a virtual pinboard. It is a place online to store and organize your favorite sites and/or ideas that you find on the web. So, lets say you see a fabulous recipe for something like Cilantro Lime Rice, you can “Pin It” and it is stored in the recpies that you want to keep on hand.

Here is how it shows up on my Pinboard:

Neat, right? I have several Pinboards that I can save my favorites to…. Books I want to Read or recommend, Things I love for the Home, Products I Love/Want to Try, etc.

So, how is it different than a bookmark?

Well, this is what I love most about Pinterest. As a Pinterest user, you get to see what other people are pinning. I follow several of my friends and they follow me. I also get to see the “Best of Pinterest”. If I see an intriguing recipe or idea from one of my friends, I can easily grab the idea and repin it to my board.

Here is a screen grab from this morning of ideas that people are sharing with me:

Fun, right?

The web is so gosh darn  full of splendid ideas, and pinterest helps me remember sites that I want to visit again, ideas I MUST remember, and it lets me see what other friends have found.

I love virtual sharing.

So, I think that you should join today.

And then let me know so that I can follow you!

I’m really just getting started in figuring this whole pinterest thing out, so we can do it together!

Have a great weekend!

Start Pinning.

XO,

Leah

Bang Bang Shrimp

Please tell me that you have had Bonefish Grill’s Bang Bang Shrimp.

Brad and I try to support local restaurants, chefs, cooks, establishments as often as possible. In our fine city, we love visiting everything from dive bar/sticky seat joints to high end restaurants that intimidate you with their wine lists, amuse bouches and fancy pants ingredients. I find that, in general, local/non-chain restaurants have better quality food and better service.

However, from time to time, a chain restaurant will reel me in with one of their signature tempting dishes. And Bang Bang Shrimp may be my favorite chain restaurant appetizer of all time.

*Side note: If you live in Cincinnati, my all-time favorite non-chain appetizers are as follows:

-Casual Joint: Habits for the Potato Rags (Crispy hashbrowns topped with bacon, cheese, tomato, onions and ranch)

-Middle of the Road: Senate for the Poutine Fries (French Fries topped with melted cheese curd and braised short ribs)

-Fancy Pants: Boca for the boat scallop served with caramelized brussel sprouts (seriously the best brussel sprout I have ever in my life even dared to imagine)

*End of Side Note- Back to the BANG! BANG!

I’m having fun these days trying to recreate some restaurant favorites at home. Why? I dunno. Because I want to. And because I can.

That’s why.

I figured I would start with the Bang Bang Shrimp. If you haven’t had this wonder, it is a small dish of fried shrimp that is coated in a creamy and spicy “bang bang” sauce. The shrimp is served over a bed of crisp iceberg lettuce and shredded cabbage. The whole kit n’ caboodle is topped with some green onion. It is the perfect naughty start to a meal.

I would like to preface this recipe by saying that I decided that for two people, it is much easier to just order some of the Bang Bang Shrimp to go. However, I will make this recipe again (FOR SURE) when having folks over for dinner or when entertaining a larger crowd.

Lets start by making the Bang Bang sauce.

You’ll need some Thai Sweet Chili Sauce. I found this at Whole Foods.

Drop 1/4 c. into a bowl.

Then add 1/2 c of mayo. Not Miracle Whip, people. Mayo.

Now get out your Sriracha hot sauce (this is found in the Asian foods aisle at the grocery store).

I started with a few drops of the hot sauce.

Then, I added a few more.

Then, some more.

I ended up adding about 1 1/2 t., but we like things spicy at our house.
I recommend adding a wee bit at a time, and giving the sauce a taste as you go.

Stir is up, and set your sauce aside.

Easy, right?

Now, because I think I hate simplicity from time to time, I decided I would make two different kinds of fried shrimp.

I like options, and I couldn’t decide between coconut shrimp or regular fried shrimp. Bonefish Grill makes regular fried shrimp, but I super duper love coconut shrimp.

And since I was cooking, it was decided that there should be a coconut shrimp version of the Bang Bang.

So, to make the batter for the Coconut Shrimp, put equal parts (I used 1/3 c. of each) of flour,

Cornstarch,

And shredded coconut (I prefer the unsweetened variety) into a bowl.

Add in one egg.

And then an equal part (1/3 c. for me!) of ice cold water.

Give that a little stir and set it aside.

Now, we will prepare batter number two.

Well actually, we will be preparing a little soak and then a dry dip for this batch of shrimp.

Mix together equal parts milk.

And regular old hot sauce.

I used Tobasco because I had it on hand. I think next time I’ll try Frank’s Red Hot because it is my fave.

And then in a separate bowl, toss in 1 cup of flour.

With 1/4 c. of cornmeal and a sprinkle of salt and pepper.

There ya have it.

Now, we shall dunk the shrimp.

I used medium sized shrimp (Bonefish uses the super small guys), and I bought mine peeled and deveined.

I kept the tails on. However, when I make this again, I’ll take the tails off. It will make for easier eating.

I took about half of my shrimp and dumped them into the coconut batter.

Then, I took the other half and allowed them to soak up some hot milky goodness.

Hang with me.

I know that this doesn’t look all that appetizing at this point.

We’re getting there though. I promise.

Get out some peanut oil.

Or vegetable oil.

The key is to use a lighter oil because the lighter oil handles higher temperatures better.

An olive oil can burn, and you don’t want that.

Trust me.

Put about 1/2 cup of oil into a large skillet. You want to use enough to fully coat the entire bottom of the pan. In fact, the oil should be about 1/8 of an inch deep.

Here is my fool proof test to know when the oil is ready. I’m not good at using fancy gadgets like thermometers.

So, I put the tip of my batter coated fork into the oil….

And when it creates a perfect frying sound and perfect frying ripples, I know that the oil is ready.

Gently place a single layer of shrimp (I started with the coconut) around the pan. They should not touch each other.

And you should not mess with them once they are in the pan.

Side Note: Wear an apron, and use long tongs. This pan will spit a little hot oil at you so you want to be covered!

After 1 1/2 minutes, give the shrimp a flip.

They should be beautifully golden.

While the second side is cooking, pull your hot sauce and milk soaked shrimp out of the liquid.

Add them to your flour/corn meal mixture. Give them a toss.

Remove your coconut shrimp from the oil to a paper-towel lined plate. Immediately give them a sprinkle with salt.

What I SHOULD have done at this point was add these very hot shrimp to a bowl of the Bang Bang Sauce to coat.

I did not do this.

Don’t be like me.

Toss your shrimp with the sauce while the shrimp are piping hot.

Cook your second batch of shrimp- single layer in the oil for 1 1/2 minutes per side.

And when they look like this, pull them out of the pan.

Drop them onto a paper towel to drain some oil.

Give them a sprinkle of salt.

Then, immediately toss the shrimp with the sauce.

Serve the shrimp over a bed of lettuce, and top the whole thing with some chives or green onion.

Again, toss your shrimp. It will look prettier than my globs of sauce do.

I served up the shrimp with a couscous and vegetable stuffed portobello and a big fruit salad.

The verdict on the shrimp?

Well, both types of shrimp were delicious.

I think a hybrid of the two would actually be perfect. Next time, I think I will follow the coconut shrimp recipe, but I will add in 1/4 c. of  cornmeal (to make a crispier fried shrimp) and I will add in 1 T. of hot sauce (to increase the spice factor).

So, what is next?

Well, I have a Kung Pao Chicken/Shrimp/Scallops recipe that I’m excited to share.

It was GOOD- think PF Changs, but not so bad for ya.

I also have a delicious lasagna recipe too.

I am still stocking up the fridge with frozen meals, so I’m cooking away. I’m just  behind on sharing with you.

Don’t hate me.

Thanks.

1 1/2 weeks until the big due date. But I’m ready now. So, bring on the baby!

Hope you are all having a great week.

XO,

Leah

We Be Grillin’

Grill baby, Grill.

I love grilling when it is a billion degrees outside, and the thought of turning on the oven or stove is laughable.

I am a firm believer in the charcoal grill. I think it conjures up way more flavor than gas.

The downside of the charcoal grill is obvious… you must plan ahead a bit since it takes so long for the coals to get ready.

But it is worth it my friends, it is worth it.

I am also a firm believer that just about anything can be grilled.

Meat.

Veggies (some of my faves include asparagus, zucchini, onions, potatoes, etc).

Fruit (any stone fruit- peaches, plums, etc. or pineapple).

Breads.

This week, we grilled a pizza. A barbecue chicken pizza to be exact.

And not to toot my own horn, but it was freaking awesome. Toot! Toot!

This recipe was inspired by a gift from the in-laws. They brought us back a dry rub and a bottle of barbecue sauce from a favorite place in Florida.

We have been patiently waiting through snow and rain to bust out these grilling goodies.

I know it is highly unlikely that you will have these particular ingredients, but any grill seasoning and barbecue sauce will do.

We start this recipe by frying up bacon. Nothing wrong with that.

Bacon is one of those ingredients that is better done in a pan than on the grill.

Yes, I have attempted to grill bacon. However, with live flames and grease dripping from bacon- bacon tends to get scorched.

So, I stick with the frying pan.

And by the way, I love a cast iron skillet. Don’t you?

Do you have one?

You need one.

Here is the thing about a cast iron skillet, you don’t really wash it out aggressively with soap and water because it is a very porous pan. So you wipe it down, and the flavor gets trapped in the pan.

Then, whenever you cook something, it has this extra delicious flavor element in the food. It is pretty magical.

Pull out the bacon. And let it set out on paper towels to drain.

Drop in some chopped onion or shallots.

Yep, just drop them into the bacon grease.

Fried onions in bacon grease.

Hello. Lover.

Bacon grease makes everything heart healthy.

OK, that was a lie.

Bacon grease does make everything more delicious. And that counts for something, right?

Chicken tenders.

Cheaper.

Thaws faster (if you are like me, and you store on-sale chicken in your freezer until you need it).

Cooks faster.

Has less weird tendons and whatnot.

Winner, winner, Chicken Tender Dinner.

Give both sides of your chicken a deep tissue massage with your grill seasoning/rub.

 

Set that chicken aside while you get your pizza dough ready.

Now I had a few servings of dough already frozen in my freezer. So, your options for dough- make a big old batch and freeze some.

Or buy a Boboli crust from your grocery store.

Or buy the uncooked pizza dough (I believe is it $1.29) from Trader Joes. It can be found near the cheese and deli meat. This would be my choice if I didn’t have homemade dough.

Give your dough a drizzle of olive oil once it is rolled out.

I also gave mine a little sprinkle of salt and crushed red pepper flake.

To the Grill!!

 

Give your chicken a head start.

With a hot grill, using chicken tenders, I needed about 3 1/2-4 min. per side.

Then, I gave them a flip.

 

Once flipped, I slathered them with the barbecue sauce.

 

And then I threw the raw rolled out dough right on the grill.

Your grill MUST be pretty hot still for this to work. If it is only providing a low heat, you run the risk of your dough oozing through the grill grates. I, personally, have never had this happen.

But it could.

 

Keep slatherin’ that chicken.

 

Don’t feed the bears.

This is our beer opener positioned on the fence right next to the grill.

I’ll give you one guess as to which member of our household purchased this bad boy.

 

After 1-2 minutes, give your dough a flip.

Mmm.

Crusty.

 

Pull all of that off the grill, and head back in to the sanctity of your air conditioned kitchen.

Take stock of everything that you shall pile on your pizza.

From left to right, I have monteray jack and cheddar cheese. I only had a teeny amount of cheddar left, hence the pathetic amount. Pepper jack, colby jack, mozzarella or provolone would all be delicious on this pizza.

Next, I have an avocado to slice up, the grilled onions, chopped bacon, a chopped tomato, some crushed red pepper flake, chopped cilantro, chopped green onion and a little more barbecue sauce.

 

Take the barbecue sauce, and use the sauce as your pizza sauce. Slather it all over.

Chop up your chicken and pile it on your crust with the chopped bacon.

 

Then, pile on all the cheese.

March that pizza back out to your grill for only a minute more to melt the cheese.

 

When it looks like this, pull it off of the grill, bring it inside and finish topping it.

 

Add on the rest of your ingredients.

Wowzer, right?

RIGHT?

 

I recommend using kitchen scissors to cut the pizza. It is slightly easier to manage. Pair the pizza with your pickled cucumber salad and a ripe summer peach.

Grilling makes my life.

It is Friday.

I hope you all have a fabulous weekend!

It is a big weekend in our family… my baby sister graduates from college. We are all so proud of her, and I for one cannot wait to see what is next for her.

Our niece also turns one on Sunday. There will be a party and presents and a cake- and a little girl surrounded by love.

Fun stuff all around.

XO,
Leah

 

Question

The other night, Brad and I were sitting on the patio unwinding from our day. We started talking about what type of parents we want to be, and we decided it would be smart to capture some of our thoughts. Then, from time-to-time, as life creeps in and stress levels mount, we can give ourself a litmus test of sorts to make sure that we are staying committed to the ideas that are important to us.

So, here is my question for you…

1. If you are a parent, what type of parent do you strive to be? Creative? Forgiving? Structured? ect.

2. If you grew up with parents or a parental figure (which I’m assuming is pretty much everyone), what did they do 100% right? What are your best memories? What qualities would you encourage a new parent to emulate?

I know that life (and particularly parenting) cannot be planned out meticulously, but I think having goals is a good thing.

Thanks friends.

XO,
Leah

Sweet Sweet Summer

So, I am having a four day weekend, and it is glorious.

Brad and I took the dogs to the park today, and they are seriously worn out.

Summer for us means lots of trips to the park where the dogs explore and sniff and roll in dead animals and cool off in a stream.

It is dog heaven.

And it is also people heaven, for the dogs are exhausted when they get home.

Lola has been upstairs in her crate (by her own choice) since just after dinner.

Dogs are easy if you can just manage to wear them out.

Easier said than done usually.

Summer means the best weather.

Summer makes me feel alive again. And sweaty. And thirsty.

But mostly good.

Summer means that the Bachelorette is back on. Man, that show is terrible.

And yet. Oy. And yet. I get sucked in. Over and over again.

This year’s season is exceptionally cheesy (man in the mask, anyone?… Bentley anyone?… anyone? Bueller?), yet here I sit watching and talking back to the T.V.

I have issues.

For us, summer also means a big first.

That’s right, folks.

Brad and I said goodbye to cable today. We have toyed with the idea for a long time, and I’m feeling pretty good (and a little nervous) about our decision. We still have the basic channels, and we have Netflix on-demand. But I’m hoping that this move will prevent me from watching meaningless drivel that seems to dominate the airwaves.

However, I just admitted that I am totally obsessed with The Bachelor, and that happens to be on basic cable. So please disregard my comment about avoiding watching meaningless drivel.

Summer also means super simple and delicious dinners and side dishes.

I love, love, love summer foods.

Tonight, I’m sharing with you an oldie but a goodie.

This old gal of a recipe has found its way onto a plethora of picnic tables. It is a super duper simple salad/side dish, and it is extra delicious.

That is a winner combination if you ask me.

Let’s toss this bad boy together, shall we?

Get yourself a cucumber. I like the English cucumbers. They are a little more expensive, but they don’t have that thick, weird, waxy exterior.

Unwrap that cuke, and lob off the ends.

Slice it in half lengthwise.

Then cut it into little half moons.

Drop those into a bowl.

Now, get yourself a ruby red tomato.

Guess what? Tonight I picked my first cherry tomatoes from my garden- yay for produce from my yard!!

The tomato pictured below was picked from the grocery store. Far less fun.

Get out your brand new Wustoff Chef’s knife.

Oh, did I mention that I got this gorgeous gal from my brother and sister-in-law for my birthday?

Slicing and dicing tomatoes is much easier when you are using a beautiful, new and very sharp knife.

Chop that tomato up.

Toss that into the bowl with the cukes.

How about a shallot?

I love shallots. I generally keep a bunch of shallots on hand rather than onions.

Why?

Because, in the words of Bobby Brown, it is my prerogative.

And I guess that I prefer shallots because it is a rare occurrence that I’ll use a whole honkin’ onion in any given recipe.

Yes, I said honkin’.

Shallots are usually the perfect size.

And they have a more mellow flavor.

So, get acquainted with them and use them and love them.

Thank you.

Take off the skin and slice it thinly.

Toss the shallots into the bowl.

Now go grab some dill from your garden.

Yes!

My herbs are growing too. Oh joy of joys.

Have I mentioned that I love summer?

Chop that up and toss it into the bowl too.

Now, add 1 cup of vinegar.

The traditional recipe calls for 1 c of white vinegar.

I used about 1/4 c. of white vinegar. Then, I ran out.

So, I moved on to white wine vinegar.

I used about 1/4 c. of that, and then I ran out.

I finished with 1/2 c. of apple cider vinegar. And you guessed it… then, I ran out.

So, what I’m trying to tell you is that just about any vinegar or any combination of vinegar would work here.

Get yourself some sugar.

Pour 1 T, and add it to your mix.

Now, add 1/2 t. of salt.

Mix it all up.

And that is it.

OK, I lied.

You aren’t quite done.

Put some plastic wrap over your bowl, and pop it into the fridge for at least an hour to marinate.

You want to give the flavors time to get to know one another.

You can let it soak for up to 24 hours if you love super flavorful veggies.

Serve it up with some Grilled Barbecue Chicken Pizza.

Oh yes, Grilled Barbecue Chicken Pizza.

I’m bringing that recipe to you later this week.

Are you excited or what?

That’s all for tonight.

I’m wrapping up this post, and I just peeked out into the backyard.

And guess what??

I saw a lightening bug.

Oh summer.

How I love thee.

Love all of you too.

XO,
Leah